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DirecTV to ease use of DMCA hammer

DirecTV will no longer file lawsuits against people that simply purchased …

DirecTV has been engaging in an ongoing war against signal pirates who use reprogrammed smart cards to receive DirecTV programming for free. They previously have used electronic warfare to render hacked smart cards useless, but they have also been using more disturbing tactics against so called signal pirates. Using anti-encryption circumvention provisions of the DMCA, DirecTV has targeted equipment vendors who sell hardware that can read and reprogram smart cards that could be used to help pirate DirecTV programming. This provision has been used to help convict pirates who reprogrammed cards and sold them for a profit, but DirecTV has also used the sales records from equipment vendor raids to send DMCA lawsuit threats to thousands who bought equipment that read and program smart cards. Of course, there are legitimate uses for smart card programming hardware and many innocentpurchasers have been caught in the DirecTV dragnet. With the prospect of a drawn out and expensive legal battle, many have forked over thousands of dollars to settle with DirecTV.

The EFF launched a DirecTV Defense website and several racketeering countersuits against DirecTV have been filed, but at least two have been dismissed and are under appeal. The EFF has also been trying to pressure DirecTV into changing their tactics and their efforts have succeeded in getting DirecTV to change how they will file DMCA lawsuits. No longer will they prosecute people for merely possessing hardware and software for smart card programming.

As a result, DirecTV has agreed to make several changes to its campaign. The company will no longer pursue people solely for purchasing smart card readers, writers, general-purpose programmers, and general-purpose emulators. It will maintain this policy into the forseeable [sic] future and file lawsuits only against people it suspects of actually pirating its satellite signal. DirecTV will, however, continue to investigate purchasers of devices that are often primarily designed for satellite signal interception, nicknamed ?bootloaders? and ?unloopers.?

While it is good news for those who have legitimately purchased smart card equipment and have not received demand letters, it is unclear how this move will affect others who have previously received threatening letters. DirecTV says they will dismiss cases if purchasers provide enough evidence showing they were not using equipment to pirate signals, but this outlines one of the major flaws with the DMCA. The burden of proof has been squarely placed on the defendant instead of the plaintiff. Scores of lawsuits against equipment purchasers have been thrown out of court for lack of proof, but it is likely those cases should have never been filed in the first place. Innocent until proven guilty? Tell that to those who ponied up settlement checks in lieu of extended court proceedings.